CHAPTER 2

                                                     RELATION

Aditya's P.O.V.

"I want to be honest with you. You know-"

"Don't drag it! Please let it all in one go. You do know that we are running late, right?! Do you want to be late for your own wedding?" She cut me off and was shooting daggers at me.

This is hard! At once I want to tell her, but I don't want to at the same time. Not that I'm scared of being embarrassed, but what if she denies it? I can no longer bear this heaviness, so I let it go.

"I want to propose to you," I said with my eyes tightly closed, not wanting to see her reaction.

"You wait-What? You're kidding, right?!" Her voice screeched, piercing my eardrums.

After composing myself, I replied, "I'm not kidding. As I said, I'm being honest with you."

"I d-don't really know how to respond to this, but as it is your dear and the first wish you've asked me, I can't really see what can go wrong, so continue, Mr. Aditya, but make it fast; we don't really want to be late."

My happiness had no boundaries.

"Shanti, did anyone tell you before that your face is as beautiful as the moonlight, your smile that can steal innocent hearts, your eyes deeper than the ocean, and your soul that can melt away anything? No, I don't want to propose like this. I know this is not that cinematic and romantic cliché proposal. I want to be honest with you. I'm not saying that you aren't beautiful. You are, and I fell for it. Not for your outer beauty but for your true beauty, your inner personality, your antics, and for your soul. I can't really promise you anything in life; as you've seen, life is as unexpected as today. I can't forcefully ask for your hand, but if you're willing to spend your life with me, I'll try to not be the reason behind your tears. I'll always lend you my shoulder, rely on your heart, and respect your decisions in life. I'm not asking you to marry me, but would you be my companion in this journey? Even if you don't, I can't really say that I can't live without you because I had lived 27 years of my life without you, but this short time I had spent with you made me feel like my next 2 decades of life were worth it. And over time I realised that we don't really have to make sense to feel something." I finished my proposal. Sometimes it's hard to frame words to express our feelings.

"Are you implying that I don't like you?"

"I- After I say all this, that's what you've understood so far?" I asked, not believing the girl who took a special place in my heart.

"I was just kidding, Mr. Unromantic Romeo," she replied with a teasing grin on her lips.

"Oh, my dear soon-to-be wife,"

"Are you claiming me yours?" She asked me.

"What?! No never"

"Relax Mr. Aditya, I never told you that I didn't like it," she said with a wink and a mischievous smile that made blood rush towards my cheeks and my heart to go insane. I tried to cover it but failed miserably.

"You'll always amuse me, Shanti."

"Then be ready to be amused for a lifetime!" She replied.

I smiled like an idiot as I shoved my hands in my pockets.

"It's unfair that you have pockets in your pancha! (A garment consisting of a length of cloth that is typically wrapped around the waist, passed between the legs, and tucked in at the waistline, worn by men in India.) I don't have pockets in my saree!!!" She scoffed with a pout.

"It's not unfair, it's Ramraj," I replied.

"Are you for real, Adi?"

"Of course I am! I'm here right beside you, Shanti."

Our banter went like this until we reached dada's beloved house. I guess it was around 4:30 in the morning, and the street lights were flickering. I could hear the dogs growling from the streets away. I never knew when her hands entwined mine.

"Are you afraid of dogs?"

"Who? Me? No, not at all," she replied with fear lacing in her voice but covered it with a laugh.

"Fine, I'll admit it, I'm scared of them, ok?"

"I didn't ask you to tell it."

She simply ignored the question and pushed the black iron gate, which creaked open. She immediately ascended the stairs to the terrace, with me slowly following her. 

"Dadaaaaa!!! What have you done?" Her voice echoed in the silent atmosphere.

"Oh my Shannu! And Aditya?! What are you both doing here? Did you two just run away from your wedding?"

I tried to control my laughter.

"Nope dada, don't keep your hopes high on that! We both came to take you back."

"Oh! I was about to come with Abhi," he said.

"Abhi?!"

"Yes," he said, pointing towards the lean boy near the entrance.

"Abhi yarr! You idiot! Can't you inform me that dada came here with you? Everybody is still thinking that dada is missing."

"Missing? Me?!"

Shanti facepalmed at the little adventure of the two cool youngsters.

"Woh sab ab chod Shannu. (Leave that all for now, Shannu.) I'll come in a bit. Abhi, come with me."

With that, he left us two to wander.

"So..." I prompted.

"Yeah?"

The city was brightly lit. Gushing of the canal was heard. My heart was pounding fast. I don't know how to describe this feeling.

"Are you ready to marry me?"

"Yes, I am. You dummy."

"So... you trust me?"

"Of course!"

"How sure are you?"

"As sure as the heart beats for one to live,"

The moment was interrupted by the vibrations in my pocket. I took out my phone to see 100 missed calls and 250 messages. True that heart attacks come without warnings. Every relative I had known and the ones whom I didn't even meet once in my whole lifetime blasted my poor phone notifications.

"What happened?"

Before I could answer, dada and Abhi made their presence known.

"Listen, I know I can't really force you to marry. I also know that you both are perfectly imperfect for each other. I'm presenting you both these bracelets. No, not as a gift, but to always remind you two that when you pull the thread of the relation, it breaks, and when you try to tie it with a knot, the two ends will never be the same."

There were tears in Shanti's and dada's eyes as they both hugged each other. It was heartwarming and heartbreaking at the same time. I distracted myself by staring at the magnificent sky. Soon Abhi and dada left and were waiting for us.

"Adi, I know that you intentionally stopped the car to confess. I also know that I hold a special place in your life," she said with a smile, but the blush on her cheeks was too bright to miss.

"Someone's being too cheesy and romantic!" I teased.

"Is there a problem with that?" She asked sternly.

"Aww honey! We make a perfect balance." I replied by pulling her close to me. Our eyes met longer than a moment. We pulled apart when we heard the dogs growl. She quickly descended down, avoiding the awkwardness. I followed her chuckling.

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